Solaris (CAF) consolidates its position as leader in the European hydrogen bus market with two new contracts in Germany and France.

The public transport operator of the German city of Cologne, Regionalverkehr Köln GmbH (RVK), has once again chosen Solaris as its supplier of hydrogen-powered buses. This time the contract comprises 20 vehicles, nine of which will be Urbino 12-metre buses, whilst the remaining eleven will be Urbino 18-metre articulated buses. Following delivery of this order, scheduled for the first half of 2025, the hydrogen bus fleet in Cologne will comprise 84 Solaris vehicles. The buses will have a guaranteed autonomy of 350 km, regardless of weather and topographical conditions.

In France, Solaris has also been selected to supply 22 Solaris Urbino 12 hydrogen buses to the Île-de-France Mobilités operator. This is a tender launched by this operator with the support of the CATP (Public Transport Purchasing Centre) for the purchase and maintenance of hydrogen buses. The aim of this pilot project was to assess the potential of hydrogen technology for the region's public transport system, as part of the initiatives and investments that have been ongoing since 2018 to renew the current fleet of buses. In this case, the units are scheduled for delivery between the end of 2024 and 2025. 

These new contracts consolidate Solaris' leading position in the European market for hydrogen and zero-emission vehicles. This is illustrated by the fact that in 2023, 44.5% of all hydrogen buses registered in Europe were Solaris vehicles.

The increase in the number of hydrogen buses sold last year is a clear indication of the growing interest in this technology, with everything pointing to this trend continuing. In fact, Solaris' order book at the end of last year included orders for 535 hydrogen-powered vehicles, for delivery between 2024 and 2026. This solution offers significant advantages, such as high autonomy and fast refuelling, which makes it highly flexible in terms of managing fleets of hydrogen-powered vehicles.

Source: CAF